Continental Hockey League (KHL) - One of Russia’s top centers, Sergei Zinovjev (Boston Bruins) finally has a new team. The veteran forward, who finished the season with HC Dynamo after being traded there from HC Kazan was rumored to be going to St. Petersburg’s SKA. Those rumors are proven to have been unfounded, as Zinovjev is now one of the newest high profile acquisitions of the Ufa based club. The club has also acquired Washington Capitals center Viktor Kozlov (Washington Capitals), more than compensating for the off-season losses of Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) and several other forwards. While undoubtedly a great talent, it remains to be seen how long Zinovjev will remain with his new club, as the forward has had a history of difficult relationships with his employers.

Continental Hockey League (KHL) - Russian professional hockey veterans Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) and Igor Schadilov (Washington Capitals) are returning to HC Ak Bars . Both players left Kazan for HC Salavat Yulayev two years ago and both have enjoyed 2 strong seasons in Ufa. Tereschenko rose from under the shadow of the Zaripov-Zinovjev-Morozov line and will now actually replace Zinovjev on this top line in Kazan. Schadilov’s career went well at first, but he was forced to miss a large portion of the 2008-09 season due to an eye injury suffered after being hit by a puck. Fortunately, his surgeries went well in Germany and the veteran defenseman just signed a four year deal with HC Ak Bars .

Continental Hockey League (KHL) - The end of the inaugural KHL season could not have been written a better way than this! Well it could have been with more scoring, but a game seven between the league’s two strongest clubs was a great way to finish it after an entertaining series. The somewhat underdog Kazan came up on top, with Alexei Morozov (Pittsburgh Penguins) scoring the only goal in the last period of the game. The club was an underdog since it has lost a few of its top players in the past two seasons including Sergei Zinovjev (Boston Bruins), Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) and goalie Alexander Eremenko. However, while some of the replacements have not been as impressive a few young players and newcomers have come up big in the series including Andrei Pervyshin (St. Louis Blues) and Nikita Alexeev (Chicago Blackhawks). Pervyshin has been a long time member of Ak Bars after leaving Lokomotiv but only this year has he become a regular contributor at the top level, while Nikita Alexeev (Chicago Blackhawks) has bounced between Russia and NHL, showing signs of immense potential but failing to break-out in either league. Lokomotiv was close to winning the series on several occasions, but the break down point for the club, despite the series continuing for another week must have been the failure to keep the 3:0 lead in game two that was eventually won by Ak Bars after a spectacular come back. Alexei Yashin and a few imported players are the clear leaders of the squad and it will be interesting to see what happens next year and whether Yashin will remain in Russia or return to the NHL after a two season absence.

Karjala Cup (EuroTour) - Russia dominated the hosting Finland in the second game of the tournament, destroying the squad 6:2. Alexei Mikhnov (Edmonton Oilers) his second goal of the tournament, with Alexander Radulov (Nashville Predators) adding two more tallies. Both forwards have looked very strong throughout this tournament, as has center Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars). In the offensive zone, defenseman Denis Kulyash (Nashville Predators) has also been impressive, back to his old form of a couple of years ago since returning to CSKA.

Karjala Cup (EuroTour) - FHR (Russian Hockey Federation) has released the list of the players who will skate for Russia in the forthcoming Karjala Cup, Euro Hockey Tour’s first round, who will be played in Finland from sixth to ninth November. Russia will play the first game at home, in Moscow, against Sweden. Every EHT round has a game scheduled in another country than the organizing one.

The Russian roster features seven players from CSKA Moscow and six from Salavat Yulaev Ufa. The most notable missing player is probably the former Vancouver Canuck Kirill Koltsov.

Continental Hockey League (KHL) - QUEBEC — At least Ken Hitchcock knew it was coming. The Canadian coach predicted Monday morning that his team was in for a “wakeup call” just hours before it was beaten 4-1 by Russia in the final exhibition game before the start of the IIHF World Hockey Championship. Hockey Canada scouts had watched Russia's 6-2 win over Switzerland a night earlier in nearby Trois-Rivieres, Que., and told Hitchcock that they would be a handful. “I think overall this is going to be the wakeup call we need,” Hitchcock said before the game. “I think tomorrow we're going to know exactly what we need to work on. (Globesports.com article) READ MORE

Super League - Ak Bars Kazan lost the fourth and deciding semifinals game to Salavat Yulayev, which advanced to the finals. Igor Volkov (New York Islanders) again scored an important goal for Salavat. Sadly, Kazan’s Alexei Morozov (Pittsburgh Penguins) – Sergei Zinovjev (Boston Bruins) – Danis Zaripov line remained quiet. Still, Kazan fought hard and forced overtime in this contest, though the extra period ended early when Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) suddently threw a shot on net from the boards and Eshe was not able to handle it. Salavat advances to the finals to meet Lokomotiv.

Super League - Salavat Yulayev vs. Severstal 3:1 (Series 1:0) - Salavat opened the quarterfinals with a tight contest against HC Severstal. The club first went up 2:0 with goals from Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) and Alexander Perezhogin (Montreal Canadiens) (who scored a beauty with a great wrist shot to the top). Yuri Trubachev (Calgary Flames) closed the gap however and the game remained tight until the last couple of minutes when Salavat finally put it away with empty netter.

Super League - Pavel Vorobiev (Chicago Blackhawks) found his scoring touch again with HC Spartak, recording his 11th and 12th goals of the season in the 5:0 victory over Metallurg. Youngster Oleg Piganovich continues his career season, scoring his 16th goal of the season, which leads all Super Leauge defnesmen. Interestingly, he is also one of the top PIM getters in the league as well. The Alexei Perezhogin – Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) – Stanislav Chistov (Boston Bruins) line ran on all cylinders today with Perezhogin scoring two tallies for Salavat Yulayev. READ MORE

Super League - Ak Bars (Kazan) appears to be back on the hunt after a convincing victory against HC Traktor. Once struggling HC Metallurg found a new scoring line with newcomer Albert Vishnyakov (Tampa Bay Lightning) on one of the wings. The young prospect assisted on both goals, making it three points for him in last two games (all assists). Alexander Korolyuk delivered his best game of the season, scoring no goals…but assisting on four of his team’s five! Igor Volkov (New York Islanders) added his lucky #13 goal of the season, while Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) struck in overtime to lead Salavat Yulayev past SKA. Ivan Tkachenko (Columbus Blue Jackets) seems to have reawakened recently, scoring two goals in this contest, making it three in last two games for a player who had just 4 tallies in first 33 games of the season. READ MORE

Super League - Spartak shocked many by earning a rare victory and against one of the strongest teams in the nation, HC Avangard. Andrei Taratukhin (Calgary Flames) has been impressive once again, scoring 2 goals for HC Salavat Yulayev. A problem of sorts is however that he was skating on the wing of the second line centered by Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars). This move, while has give Taratukhin a larger role, has taken him away from his common center position. Viktor Alexandrov (St. Louis Blues) scored his ninth goal of the season, continuing his impressive success thus far. Fedor Fedorov (New York Rangers) is back on track with another strong performance for HC Dynamo, scoring a goal and the game winning shootout attempt. READ MORE

Russian Super League - Find out more about the changes that took place within last season's top four clubs in the Super League. Some such as Avangard Omsk and Metallurg Magnitogorsk have strived to stay on the same trek. Others, such as the league's favorite Ak Bars Kazan that is known for the high flying Morozov - Zinovjev - Zaripov line, coped with some significant changes. Finally CSKA has significantly strengthened the roster despite losing a couple of talented players. READ MORE

Russian Super League - Nikolai Kulemin (Toronto Maple Leafs) stole the show in the hard fought contest between his HC Metallurg with HC Sibir, when he broke through two defensemen, put the goalie to the ice, and then managed to force the puck around the netminder while falling to the ice. Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) played very well for Ak Bars, aggressively attacking the opponent and driving towards the net. He scored once, but also almost scored again, but instead hit the post. A strong game from a talented young center. Former Montreal Canadiens goaltending prospect Vadim Tarasov (Montreal Canadiens) performed well for HC Salavat Yulayev, stopping 28 of CSKA’s 30 shots. He split regular season duties, but has come on strong as of late. READ MORE

Russian Super League - Forward Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) has suffered concussion during a preseason game between his Ak Bars and Moscow’s CSKA. The Dallas Stars prospect went down after a hard hit from defenseman Kiril Lyamin (Ottawa Senators) and did not return to the game. He is projected to make his way back into the lineup within two weeks. During the off-season, Tereschenko was one of a number of Dynamo (Moscow) players who left RSL 2005 Champion to join Dynamo’s former coach Zinatulla Belyaletdinov in Kazan.

Russian Super League - According to an interview given by Dynamo’s head coach Vladimir Krikunov to the Soviet Sport newspaper, the injury suffered by Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) during a game against Avangard (Omsk) was less serious than expected and he was in the club’s lineup against Metallurg (Magnitogorsk) earlier today. Against Avangard, Tereschenko got hit in the face and had to have six stitches.

Dynamo beat High League (Russia 1) club HC MVD 8:3 in a friendly contest. HC MVD is from Tver, and is formerly known as HC THK until this summer, when the police force took the club under it’s financial

Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) returned from a leg injury ahead of schedule, reclaiming his spot on Dynamo’s top line. The young forward returned ahead of schedule. In the first period of the match against Salavat Yulayev he gave the fans a bit of a scare, limping off the ice. However, he returned on his next shift like nothing happened, and eventually scored a power play goal late in the game, sealing Salavat’s fate.

Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) continues hot streak on Dynamo Moscow's top line. He assisted Dynamo's both goals in the club's 2:1 victory over a serious competitor, Ak Bars Kazan. Unfortunately, in the third period of the match, the young forward's skate got caught in a rut while he was trying to break, causing him to twist and fall. As a result, Tereschenko hurt his foot, but is projected to be out of the lineup for only a week.

Alexei Tereschenko (Dallas Stars) spent the majority of the 2003-04 season on Dynamo Moscow’s third line, taking on the defensive and checking responsibilities against the opposition’s top lines. Unfortunately his role did not permit Tereschenko to display his offensive talents that have shine the previous season. Fortunately, during Dynamo’s January struggles, the talented young center was promoted to Dynamo’s top line, and it appears that he is there to stay. Tereschenko’s has been Dynamo’s best forward on the ice in almost every game and his responsible two way play has helped a lot to turn the club back on track at the top of the Super League. The experiment is 12 games old, and Tereschenko has already scored 10 points (5+5), including today’s hattrick in Dynamo’s 4:2 victory over Neftkhimik Nizhnekamsk. Not bad, consider that the speedy center had just 6 points (2+4) the previous 33 games. For his efforts to right Dynamo Moscow’s path, Alexei Tereschenko is RussianProspects.com’s Featured Player!

Dallas Stars prospect Alexei Tereschenko turned 23 today. Happy Birthday Alexei! The young forward appears to have recovered from his shoulder injury and has begun practicing by himself. He will be able to practice with the team in two weeks.

Talent Analysis:

Alexei Tereschenko is a classic Russian smallish center with smooth skating and great creativity on the ice. Alexei is a fast skater, able to move through traffic. Alexei is also very creative with the puck, able to effectively use his wingers on the attack. Alexei Tereschenko also possesses a strong work ethic and great on and off ice leadership skills. He displayed his leadership abilities when he lead the Russian Under 20 team to the gold medal at the 2000 World Junior Chamionships. Despite his skating and passing abilities, Alexei is at a disadvantage against larger defenseman due to his smaller build. He needs to get the full use out of his 5’11 frame and bulk up to be able to compete in the NHL. Also, even though his team performed poorly during the 2000-01 season, it is still unacceptable to record only 6 points (3+3) in 40 games. Alexei is only 20 and has shown signs of talent during this dreadful season for Dynamo Moscow, but he needs to mature his skills to achieve a balance between defensive play and his scoring.

Here is what Russian hockey expert, Maxim Dostoevsky had to say about Alexei Tereschenko:
"He's a crafty two-way forward with solid defensive upside. Tereschenko started the season on Dynamo's top line. But since than had "successfully" fallen to the fourth unit (played along side Mighty Ducks prospect Alexei Smirnov and Dmitri Semenov). Spend some games in the press-box in second portion of the season. His demotion was due to luck of consistency - production wise; since there's nothing wrong with his work ethic. At 5'11 he's a bit undersized and needs to improve his body strength. He gets knocked off the puck a bit too often. He's a fast player with above average skills. He has some leadership abilities, as he was Russia U-20 team captain at the last WJC. If ever makes it to NHL may become a decent third liner a la Lyaschenko and Nikolishin, but a bit weaker defensively"

Back In Russia:

Alexei Tereschenko is a product of the Dynamo Moscow farm system. He has grown up to become one of Dynamo Moscow’s leaders at the age of only 20. While playing in Russia, Alexei has displayed great character beyond his ages. A few years ago he returned from a career ending back injury despite all the prognosis and predictions otherwise. Alexei started his professional career with Dynamo Moscow’s junior team Dynamo 2, where he became best friends with Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Alexei Ponikarovsky and Washington Capitals prospect Igor Schadilov. After displaying skills superior to that level of hockey, he was promoted to Dynamo’s farm team THK Tver during the 98-99 season, where he continued his high level of play and recording 7 points (3+4) in just 12 games. During that same season Alexei also saw some playing time on Dynamo Moscow’s main roster, appearing in 1 regular season and 2 playoff games.

During the 99-00 season, Alexei Tereschenko has become a permanent member on Dynamo’s roster. After the 99-00 season, during which Dynamo Moscow won the Russian Super League gold medals, a lot of key players, including 1999 Russia’s Goalie of the Year, Vitali Yeremeev, experienced defensemen Alexander Khavanov and Vitali Proshkin, and powerful forwards Alexander Prokopiev, Alexander Kharitonov, left the team for the NHL or other Russian Super League teams. In light of their departure, Alexei was given the chance this season to establish himself on the main roster of Dynamo Moscow. Despite the team’s lackluster performance and relatively low production from Alexei, this season has become very useful for him, as he has been given key responsibilities that he would have never received at such a young age if the aforementioned players would have stayed with the team.

Besides his Russian Super League experience, Alexei Tereschenko’s International experience has convinced the NHL scouts of his great value. He captained the Russian gold medal winning 2000 Russian Junior National Team and recorded 7 points and a +6 rating during that campaign and was named to the tournament's first all star team. Alexei also participated in two other tournaments with the Russian Junior National Team during the 1999 and 2000 seasons. He registered 5 points (3+2) and a +5 rating in only four games at the Four Nations Tournament in St. Petersburg. He also participated in the 2000 Five Nations Tournament, registering a goal in three games.

NHL Outlook:

During the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, Alexei was drafted by the Dallas Stars in the third round and 91st overall. Alexei’s leadership is an immense asset already at his young age. His skills are already developed to the level where he can freely compete at the Super League level which is equivalent to the AHL. If his development continues at the current pace, Alexei will be at the Dallas Stars Training Camp within the next two years.